The Blue Baller here, putting the finishing touches on the article I was born to write: my reaction to a Vince Carter trade. Now hold on! I know where you think I’m going with this, but I assure you that this is not a VC-bashing rant. No, it is not that I am above kicking a man while he is down (and there is plenty of opportunity with Carter…sorry, couldn’t resist), I in fact revel in the opportunity. It is just that I have already taken my shots. This article is about the trade.
When I first heard about the deal, I had the same reaction as a lot of fans—sounds like Babcock traded in a night with a ‘sure thing’ for three hand-jobs. Actually, more like 2 hand-jobs now, 2 hand-jobs in the future, and one expensive sunk cost of a date with no chance of action. But the more I think about this deal, the more I like it. Sure it might have been a bit hasty and I would have liked to see Rose included, but this trade gets The Blue Baller’s Seal of Approval.
Addition by Subtraction
From an on the court perspective, VC was not working and had not been for the last 3 years. As much as fans and teammates may have wanted him to be the leader and cornerstone of a solid Raptor team, he simply did not have it in him physically or mentally. As evidenced by his first comments to the New Jersey media indicating he could not wait to “be the other guy, that third guy to help out”, Carter longs to have the adulation of a Star without any of the responsibility. Carter’s game has also diminished incredibly, as he has evolved into an athletic jump-shooter that doesn’t play defense—an exciting version of Del Curry with more business competing in the 2 Ball Competition than the Dunk Contest.
The larger benefit for the Raptors in this deal is obviously the removal of Vince’s influence off the court. Seasons upon seasons of the franchise coddling and acquiescing to every Carter whim created an environment where damaging precedents were set regarding how people could treat VC. The organization was so invested in him, that it was obviously difficult for Babcock or Mitchell to reprimand him or even treat him like another player. This separate set of rules was all but confirmed by Peddie who commented "the general manager always runs the club. But if (Rob Babcock) ever wanted to trade Vince, we needed to talk about it as a group.” It is similar to the situation in Boston where Danny Ainge traded Antoine Walker because he had a damaging “grip” on the organization. Well where Walker’s grip was one of a domineering and flawed offensive game, Carter’s influence was one of entitlement. Both Mitchell and Babcock tried to chip away at that grip by benching him and making Vince’s mom take the TTC respectively, but both were restrained. How else can you explain Mitchell teeing off on French-warmer Jerome Moiso for an entire post-game press conference and staying mum on Carter?
This may seem like a front-office issue, but it was obviously negatively affecting team chemistry. How do you think Alston felt after a game where he busts his ass only to be called out by Mitchell in the press while VC is relaxing in the steam room listening to Nelly on his iPod after playing 22 minutes? In the Raptor family, VC was the spoiled fat kid who always got the last piece of cake. No more.
Addition by…uh, Addition
From a basketball perspective, Babcock addressed the key area of concern for his current roster: tough interior defense—particularly if Mourning has a change of heart (and change in host-donor kidney compatibility). Since the Chicago deal last season, opposing forwards have cut through the Raptors frontline like hot urine through a snow bank. Babcock also addressed my biggest concern of a VC trade by not trading for Tim Thomas and Penny Hardaway. No amount of drug or hypnosis treatment could ever bring The Blue Baller to cheer for these two.
Again, off the court is where I expect these new Raptors to have the largest contribution. Successful NBA teams all have a few leaders who instill a professional culture and effectively police a locker room. Mitchell knows this, he was one of them. And so is Eric Williams, who was such an asset to his former Celtics coach Jim O’Brien that JO resigned when Williams was traded—ironically for another talented-player-slash-locker-room-poison Ricky Davis.
Can you imagine a pouty Rafer Alston sulking between Eric Williams and Alonzo Mourning after a game, contemplating retirement after Sam yelled at him?
Alonzo: “What’s the matter Skip?”
Rafer: “Coach yelled at me, I can’t take it. I’m going to quit.”
Alonzo: “Yeah, I felt that way after I had someone else’s kidney transplanted into my body, but I thought I’d tough it out”
Eric: “Same here, I thought about retiring to spend more time with my son after his mother was murdered”
Time to grow up boys, you are now in the company of men.
The Future
Aside from changing the current roster, this trade was obviously made to give Babcock the opportunity to better determine his own fate. It is a predictable first move by a new GM, and the additional cap space and pair of decent draft picks will give him some of the flexibility he is looking for.
That said, I like to think of this move as the first tangible step made by Babcock to deliver on his vision of building a roster of players with team values and high character. I also like to think this vision is in some way informed by his newfound understanding of the values of Toronto fans. Toronto is a city where divas and empty bravado do not play well—you gotta earn it, show you can take a punch. Sundin jerseys didn’t outsell Domi jerseys until the talented Swede started to throw his big frame around. Rocket Ismail’s popularity seems like a blip compared with the now iconic stature of underdog Pinball Clemens. And as evidenced by the ACC going wild after Bonner channeled the spirit of Iron Mike Sharpe last week against Minnesota, Toronto fans will always appreciate grit, hard work, and sacrifice. That’s why I think Toronto will eventually appreciate Aaron and Eric Williams as much as we respect Jerome and Alvin.
Well there is my case, let the retorts fly. But remember, The Blue Baller can also take a punch.
- The Blue Baller
A few last words about Carter, since I won’t have him to kick around anymore…well, as conveniently anyway. I can’t help but feel slightly nostalgic and a pang of hypocrisy in delighting in his departure. There are just too many memories. Good ones. From the fist rumours out of UNC that he was MJ to Jamison’s Worthy, to awing Kevin Willis by dunking two balls in his first Raptor practice, to the string of game-winning shots leading up to his All-Star coming out party, to besting his first ever rival Ray Allen after the USA Basketball snub, to bouncing back in Game 4 against the Knicks to even the series, to that shot against Philadelphia in 2001—that made even the cynical Blue Baller hold his breath, and believe.
The Blue Baller is a lover, fighter, and Toronto-based freelance writer. He can be reached at TheBlueBaller@hotmail.com.
Awesome stuff. I agree 100% on the double standard treatment of Vince compared to the rest of the team.
But the issue is league-wide - star players get treated differently by the coaches (not named Phil Jackson). Take a look at Kobe and Rudy T, MJ and Doug (for an extreme example), T-Mac and whoever is coaching him) etc.
Its endemic to the NBA community.
Posted by: Kola | December 23, 2004 at 07:27 PM
Keep up the great work baller.
Posted by: Jai Monee | December 23, 2004 at 11:20 PM
Great piece baller. Always a pleasure to read your thoughts. I believed in Carter too. I feel the same way as you now.
Posted by: suenster | January 22, 2005 at 06:26 PM